The Dominator (54 page)

His eyes trailed down from my throat to my hand and widened at the sight of my engagement ring.

“Nice rock,” he commented and it was said almost in a prideful way, like he was taking credit. It made me feel a little queasy.

“I want some truth from you, Dad.”

He let out a breath, “The truth is that I know I was a lousy father but I’ve always loved you. You’ve always been the apple of my eye. Tom Ferrano set his sights on you and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do about it. You don’t know how it is in this world, Tia; the man had power and reach and there was nothing I could do. Your mother grew up in that world and I know she didn’t want it for you but I just prayed you’d somehow be happy and safe. It looks like you are. I want to be in your life. I feel like I can finally be in your life now that I’m not looking over my shoulder all the time. I tried to stay away to keep you safer. It didn’t work and here we are but maybe it’ll be okay. Maybe now we can move ahead, put all that behind us.”

“You left me to rot in foster homes to protect me?” I was incensed.

“Crenshaws? That big house? That was rotting?” I didn’t like the snark in his voice, like I’d had it so easy.

“You had no way of knowing where I’d end up and I wasn’t there the whole time. Do you know the stories I’ve heard from some of the girls? Some of them that lived in group homes or who got molested or abused by other foster kids, foster dads? You had no way of knowing I’d be okay. You’d go months without checking on me. And as good as they were to me, they took me because you abandoned me. You. You abandoned your daughter after her mother died and social services paid someone else to do your job, to raise me. Everyone tells me I’m very well-adjusted considering what I’ve been through in my life but Dad, you get zero credit for that. Zero fucking credit.”

“I’ve never seen you so angry,” he looked down.

“This? This is nothing! Let’s talk about how you tricked me on my high school graduation day to be your “marker” when you knew, you fucking knew what you were really doing! You basically sold me into slavery, Dad.”

Dad winced. Tommy was still seated on the conference table. He had his arms folded and he was watching me, looking at me with an unreadable expression.

“I was sold like a piece of chattel,” I continued, rage propelling my words, “I was treated like a piece of property to be pawned off. And then when I escaped because it was fucking unbearable,” I glanced at Tommy but he made no moves, his expression didn’t change, “What did you do? Did you help me? Did you? No, you called Tommy and told him where to find me. Do you know what I had endured up to that point? Do you have any idea? Do you even care?”

Dad shook his head, “I had no choice.  And you were obviously safer here than down in Mexico. Imagine what might’ve happened to you if I hadn’t told him where you were? If you’d gotten nabbed before he found you, maybe escaped a bit longer he wouldn’t have
wanted
to rescue you from Mexico. Maybe you should’ve just did what you were told and stayed put.”

“That’s enough,” Tommy spat. My eyes were wide, I was shocked. What kind of twisted logic?

“Listen,” Dad drawled, smiling now, trying to salvage this, his eyes darting to and fro between Tommy and me, “I did what I thought I needed to do. I always did. I just wanted you safe. I was no match for the Ferranos. I knew you’d have a good life here. Tommy is a good man; he’s taking care of you. You’re happy. I never understood why your Mom wanted away from this life. I tried to work my way up but Tom wouldn’t let me in. I thought I was a dead man, that Tom would have me taken out after your Mom. But he didn’t. Then when he came for you, I thought through you, I dunno, maybe I’d know we were now safe and then I’d be a part of your life. Tommy, I’m available. I’m happy to start at the bottom, I ---”

“Get out.” I interrupted. Dad looked at Tommy beseechingly and stayed perfectly still. There was silence for a beat.

Finally, Tommy notched a brow and jerked his chin up, “You heard her. Nino will walk you out.”

“Uh,” Dad got to his feet, “Can I uh… can I get a lift back home? I don’t have cab fare, I…”

“Get the fuck outta here,” Tommy pointed toward the door, “Nino!” he hollered, making me jump a little. The door flew open and Nino was in the room, looking ready to crush bones. He hauled my Dad out of the chair and held him by the scruff.

“Escort him out,” Tommy said. Tommy followed them out into the hall and shut the door. I don’t think I was breathing. Then Tommy was back. He shut the door and leaned against it and looked at me. I guess I was just staring off into space. Dad hadn’t even looked back at me on his way out the door. I looked up at Tommy finally, not sure what I’d see.

“Come here, baby,” Tommy said.

I stood slowly and fought the trembling that had started in my chin. No, no more tears. Not for him. Tommy pulled me against him and kissed the top of my head and held me. The strength of his arms around me, the solidness of his chest, the smell of him, he smelled like home to me now. He softly started to fill me in on the rest of the conversation he had with my father and I kept dry eyes throughout the time he talked, my head just resting against his chest.

My father was a fuck up. My father was probably a rebound for my mother who was looking for a different life than what she’d grown up with but my dad was the wrong choice.  Tom Ferrano set out to ruin my Dad, to show my Mom what a loser he was so my Mom would come back to him. It didn’t work. It might’ve driven my mom to suicide. Tom Ferrano might have killed my uncle as he had been allegedly obsessed with my mother and the power my uncle wielded. Mom’s family were connected, even more than Tom Ferrano back in those days. I never knew.

Tommy didn’t have any proof that his father did anything to my mother directly but Tommy had concerns that a lot of what my father had said was true because he said it fit his Pop’s MO, his MO was get to someone anyway he could and often that was by hitting them where it hurt and sometimes by making their life crumble around them. Tom Ferrano had the power to do that to people. With my Uncle Joe out of the way he had more power than ever. Tommy said he got off on the power, the control over peoples’ lives. Tommy said his Pop loved being a puppet master and his eyes were filled with irony, apology, as he told me that.

“So what now?” I asked, looking up at him and trying to ignore the way Tommy’s voice changed as he talked about his father’s love for control.

Tommy shook his head, “I’ll dig for more info. I have plans to talk to Bianca’s ma, she’s been an aunt to me. And to Dario’s mother. Then I decide what to do.”

“What do you mean what to do? What
can
you do?”

Tommy shrugged, “Let’s see where the truth takes us and then I’ll decide.”

I didn’t like the darkness in his eyes at that statement. I didn’t know what it all meant but I didn’t like it one single bit.

I heard a commotion outside the door. Tommy opened it. Nino and another guy I didn’t recognize were rushing toward the door, “T, I think you should come outside. Your father and Greg O’Connor---”

Tommy booked it toward the door and I followed and outside the front gate was opened and Tom Sr. was beating the snot out of my father out on the street. Tommy ran, passing James, and hauled his father off my father, whose face was gushing blood.

“Tia! Back in the fucking house!” Tommy yelled. His father tried to pull free of Tommy’s grip and then the most awful thing happened. Tommy’s silver crucifix necklace flew airborne during the scuffle and it fell. I ran for it but it fell down and when my eyes landed on the ground, they didn’t land on concrete or on grass. It was a sewer grate. I landed on my knees and cried out. Tommy let go of his father and reached for me and then Tom grabbed my dad again and cold clocked him and my dad was knocked out, lying on the ground bleeding right beside the sewer that had swallowed up Tommy’s necklace, Tommy’s anchor to goodness.

I was inconsolable. I was on my now bloodied knees bawling, staring at the sewer. Anyone watching might’ve thought that I was crying for my passed out bleeding father but my eyes met Tommy’s and I knew he saw precisely what I was weeping about.

He hollered out “Jimmy!” and then Nino and James got my father up off the ground carried him, barely conscious back toward the house. 

Tommy yelled at his father, “Pop, inside!” And then he lifted me off the ground and cradled me to his chest, carrying me tight against himself, back to the house while I cried inconsolably into his chest, clutching his shirt.

Tommy

The guys put O’Connor into a car and had someone drive him. I knew they’d either get him looked at by a doctor or they’d bring him back to his house if he was alright.  I got Tia into the family room and put her on the couch and covered her shoulders with a blanket and dabbed at her bleeding knees with tissue. She’d stopped crying but was making shuddering noises and had the hiccups. Sarah brought her a glass of water and put two glasses and a decanter of scotch on the coffee table, left the room and then came back with a first aid kit. I took it from her and waved her away and put antiseptic and then Band-Aids on Tia’s knees and then I poured a drink for Pop and for myself.  He sat a few cushions away from Tia on the sofa, watching me bandage her up with a weird expression on his face. I was sitting on the coffee table, my legs between the two of them.

“Pop, it’s time for the truth.”

He downed his scotch and looked at her.

I said, “I know some of it, I know you know that I know some, but we need you to fill in the blanks.”

“I’m sorry if that upset you,” he said to Tia, “That necklace you’re wearing, I gave that to your mother for her eighteenth birthday. Caused quite an uproar at the time.”

She put her hand to her throat.

“We were crazy about each other but her brother, my best friend and business partner, wanted no part of it. He didn’t want one of his buddies dating his little sister.  Died when he was 28. Tragic loss. I was there for her and she was there for me and we started to date. It was at the end of my marriage to Annette. But Lita and I had a fight one night and split up, stupid fight, and she decided she wanted no part of the life I lead. We went our separate ways. She married your father. She married fast so I’d know we were really over. You were born. Then we reconnected again, she wasn’t happy with him, and we talked about leaving our spouses. She got pregnant with my baby.”

Tia gasped.

“She had all this guilt. She decided to give things another go with him. Your father made her get rid of my kid. I’ve always hated him for that. I’m Catholic, you know; we don’t believe in that. When he made her have that abortion, I believe it destroyed her. He was the reason she died.” Pop poured another glass of scotch.

“I saw you a few months ago,” Pop said, “Saw you all grown up one day on the street with your friends and it was like looking at her all young and happy again and I, I … I decided to give my son what I should’ve had.

I’ve been married a lot. But if I’d married Lita, that would’ve been forever. I won’t deny I wanted to take Gregory’s child the way he took my child from me, the child
I
never got to know.” He shrugged and downed the drink, “So I hate your father. Sorry but that’s how it is. Tommy cleared his debt and it’s done. I’ve wanted to knock him out for years and saw his smug face when he left here today and so I just closed the chapter with my fists, that’s all. I’m done.” Pop looked at me and raised his hands defensively, “I’m done, my boy. I know what you said when you cleared the debt but I just needed to knock the smug look off his face. I’m done now.”

Tia had stopped shuddering and hiccupping. She was dabbing her eyes.

Pop got to his feet, “You wanna have him at your wedding, I’ll keep my mouth shut and I’ll be nice. As nice as I can be under the circumstances. You two have kids and he has to come to the baptism and so forth, I’ll be on my best behavior. But don’t expect me to be friends with him and unless it’s important don’t expect me to be under the same roof.”

“C’mon Pop.” I said and signaled for him to follow me. I leaned over and kissed her on the forehead and whispered, “Back in a few.”

Pop and I stepped outside. His driver was standing by the gate talking to Nino and Jimmy and they halted conversation when they saw us come out. I shot a dirty look their way. They looked like a couple of gossiping old ladies.

“What brought you by today?” I asked.

“Just wanted to say Hello,” he answered and shrugged but he was looking me right in the eye, the way he always did when he was feeding me bullshit.

It was obvious that he knew O’Connor was here. Someone told him that my guys were picking the guy up. Who?

“Come by the office tomorrow morning, we gotta talk more about the Fete plan. Unfortunately, Denarda’s back in. People flying in tomorrow. I’ll fill you in later.”

“Right,” I said, jaw tight. Leo Denarda. Great.

“When ya getting married?” Pop asked.

I shook my head, “Not sure.”

“What’s the problem? You not sure about her now?”

I shook my head, “I’ve never been more sure about anything in my life.”

He frowned at me.

“I want it to be right. We’re almost there. It won’t be long.”

“You’re keeping me from my Valhalla,” he waggled a finger at me.